Warmth
by EndlessDreamer1024
Summary: She groans as the light aggravates her already fierce headache and she turns her head away from the sun only to be startled by another offending sight: Anika attached to her, literally.


When Cookie wakes up with an aching head and cotton mouth, she is _warm_. She rubs her hand over her face as she smacks away the nasty sensation in her mouth. The curtains in her room are drawn open and the sun is entirely too fucking bright for her liking. She groans as the light aggravates her already fierce headache and she turns her head away from the sun only to be startled by another offending sight: Anika attached to her, _literally._ Cookie's blouse is scrunched up in her hand and their legs are tangled together as Anika has firmly secured Cookie's leg between her own. She's dead to the world and Cookie doesn't really know what to think, do, or say at the moment. If she's unnerved by the way Anika has latched onto her while she sleeps, she's not vocalizing it - though she is _definitely_ unnerved by the hold Anika has on her. Once she gathers her bearings, her first instinct is to push Anika off of her but then Anika rubs her leg against hers and she freezes.

Fuck.

The way she sees it, she has two options. Option One: pushing Anika off of her and risk waking her up or Option Two: leaving her the way she is and going back to sleep.

Rubbing her temple with her free hand (the other arm is currently under Anika), Cookie tries to piece together the previous night and figure out how she ended up with Boo Boo Kitty holding onto her for dear life. She looks down again and says a quick thanks that they're still clothed, although Cookie notices that Anika's skirt has risen up a bit and the top two buttons of her blouse are undone.

Her memory is hazy at best but she vaguely remembers sitting next to Anika at the bar of the hotel they were currently at. They'd had a meeting with a potential producer in Chicago but the meeting had turned sour once Cookie had vocalized that she was unwilling to utilize a studio outside of Lyon Dynasty. _We have state of the art studios at Dynasty that I'm sure will be able to meet your needs._ Anika had actually understood Cookie's point of view and was ready to offer a compromise which included using Dynasty's studios and meeting any necessary additives the producer may require when he stated that he didn't trust that Dynasty would be able to provide the equipment or singers needed to create a legitimate hit, disrespecting Dynasty as a whole and Cookie and Anika in the process. Cookie declared the meeting over with a vehement ' _ain't no way in hell I'm going to work with some fake-ass Dr. Dre who insults my label and my artists. Fuck you and your beats!'_

Irritated by the turn of events, Anika had stalked away to the bar. By the time Cookie sat down next to her, Anika had already thrown back 2 shots of Tortuga Gold Rum and was about to throw back a third. Cookie gave the younger woman a once-over. She wasn't used to seeing Anika so... _loose_. No...that wasn't the right word... _personable_. Anika was always poised and in control whenever Cookie was around her and to see her throwing back shots without a wince or a care intrigued her. Still pissed that she wasted her time and money meeting with that wack-ass producer, Cookie decided to follow in Anika's footsteps and took some shots of her own. She caught up with Anika and soon enough they had just about finished the entire bottle between them.

Somehow Anika was able to buy the almost empty bottle and the other they had in stock from the bartender before they headed back to their hotel rooms. Wanting to keep her tipsy state going, Cookie invited Anika to her room to continue their rum adventure and they'd ended up sharing the second bottle between them in the sitting area of her suite.

For the first time, the two women actually talked without tearing each other down. Cookie wouldn't be Cookie if she didn't throw the occasional barb but for once there was no malice behind her words. They'd spoken about Lucious and concluded that he wasn't shit, to either of them and as a person. Anika disclosed that she was initially attracted to Lucious' love for his craft and loved being with someone who understood and loved music the way she did. But once Cookie was released from prison, she realized that her relationship with Lucious was over. ' _His queen had returned'_ she said as she took a sip from the bottle. Cookie noted that there was no animosity as she spoke; it was simply fact.

Cookie didn't apologize - she wasn't sorry and she doubted Anika would believe any apology that came from her lips anyway - but it was the first time that she recognized what Anika had lost while Cookie was struggling to regain what was hers. Anika was far from perfect - she was shady as shit and even with the work that she did for Dynasty, Cookie still didn't fully trust her - but then again neither was Cookie so who was she to judge Anika for her faults? Of course, Cookie wouldn't be Cookie if she didn't look beyond her faults to focus on Anika's, but in this moment, they weren't Cookie and Boo Boo Kitty. They were Cookie and Anika, and she she was beginning to see little bits and pieces that she hadn't been shown before.

They'd spoken about Dynasty and how given the right team, the label could grow beyond Cookie's wildest dreams. As Anika spoke, albeit with slurred words, Cookie could see why Lucious had hired her in the first place. She was good at her job and she legitimately wanted what was best for Dynasty. Even with Cookie firing her in the beginning, she still came back when Cookie begrudgingly asked her to and that was only because Jamal had told Cookie how foolish she would be if she let Anika go. Though her physical beauty alone made her attractive, it was her drive that made her the total package.

Over time as they worked together, she began to understand Anika's appeal and how Lucious fell in love with her. Having someone who wanted what was best for you on a personal and professional level...she could see why Lucious wanted to hold on to Anika.

For a brief moment she wondered what it would be like to have Anika not only as an employee but as someone to hold onto on a more personal level. As intense an employee she was - if you Googled 'Type A' it would say 'showing results for **Anika Calhoun** ' - Cookie could only imagine that Anika would be an equally intense lover. As much as Cookie couldn't stand Anika on any given day, her antipathy of the woman didn't stop the warmth from spreading throughout her body as she imagined holding her. She'd searched for that warmth with Lucious, Malcolm, and Laz but had fallen short. While Malcolm had set her body on fire, Lucious had sent chills through her, and poor Laz was lukewarm at best. And despite her time with the three of them, none of them had left that lingering warmth.

Back in the present, Cookie remembered how she shook the feeling off and blamed the warmth on the alcohol that was flowing through her system. The bottle empty, Anika had curled up on the lounge settee and was almost asleep when Cookie told her to get in bed. They'd fallen on opposite sides of the bed and sleep eventually claimed them both. Cookie couldn't even make a comment about Anika staying on her side because as soon as her head hit the pillow, she was out like a light.

As Anika let out a little snore, Cookie continued to weigh her options. Option one allowed for her to ignore the warmth she felt from the night before and pretend like she hadn't woken up with Anika making her home against her. Option two allowed for her to take the opportunity and see what it felt like to hold Anika because she knew it would never happen any other way.

The option she _should_ choose is glaringly obvious. She shouldn't even be contemplating her supposed 'options.' Anika should be falling off of the bed and flat on her face by now instead of wrinkling Cookie's shirt.

 _Damn Boo Boo Kitty, this bitch is a fucking koala._

When she goes to move the arm that's pinned under Anika because it's fallen asleep and she can't feel her fingers anymore, she finds that she's unable to without shifting to the point that she'll most certainly wake Anika up. She's not trying to lose an arm because of the koala currently laying on top of her so shift she does. The relief she feels as the blood flows to her extremities is immediate and she wiggles and flexes her fingers simply because she can. Once she's done flexing, the almost-dead arm finds itself wrapped around Anika's waist because surprisingly she hadn't woken up when Cookie jostled her around and really it was the only comfortable position available (plus, as hard an exterior as Anika tries to put up in front of Cookie, she finds that the Anika currently attached to her is rather soft and Cookie can't say that she hates the way Anika feels against her).

The room starts to spin a bit and she's starting to feel sick so she closes her eyes in hopes that it'll give her some relief. As she tries to will the dizziness and nausea away, she feels Anika stiffen in her arms and feels her trying to control her breathing which has suddenly picked up. She opens one eye and peers down at Anika whose eyes are scrunched shut and watches as she starts to tremble slightly. She realizes Anika is awake and has figured out that she's not with Lucious or any man for that matter and is about to work herself into a panic attack at the rate she's going.

Almost absentmindedly, Cookie beings to rub slow circles on the small of Anika's back. She feels Anika tense up which stops her trembling but her breathing is still erratic and her eyes are still shut tight. Cookie lets her hand trail under Anika's blouse and continues rubbing her back as her other hand gently rubs her scalp. The physical warmth she felt when she first woke up spreads as her hands trail up and down Anika's back until her face relaxes and Cookie can almost feel the relief flow off of her. She watches as Anika shifts until she's more comfortable and firmly in Cookie's arms. The inner warmth that she felt the night before, the warmth that's currently growing inside of her doesn't slow as Anika's breathing starts to even out, signaling Cookie that she's starting to fall asleep again.

Cookie closes her eyes a final time and just before sleep takes over, she feels Anika release the tight hold she has on Cookie's shirt and feels her wrap her arm around Cookie's waist instead.

The warmth grows.


End file.
